Corn or bunion shield.



PATENTED NOV. 8, 1904.

I. A. GEORGE.

CORN 0R BUNION SHIELD.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 27. 1904.

N0 MODEL.

lsmcA.

UNITED STATES ISAAC A. GEORGE, OF HASTINGS, NEBRASKA.

CORN ossumow SHIELD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,317, dated November 8, 1904. Application filed February 2'7, 1904. Serial No. 195,625, (Nb model.)

To all whom, 2125 party concern:

Be it known that I, ISAAC A. GEORGE, a citi- Zen of the United States, residing at Hastings, in the county of Adams and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and useful Corn or Bunion Shield, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to corn and bunion shields for the protection of corns and bunions from the injurious and painfuleffects of pressure from the shoes.

The principal object of the invention is to provide an improved type of shield by means of which the corn or bunion to which it is applied may be completely protected from pressure, which will occupy a minimum of space within the wearers shoe, which will be held in place without the use of tapes or adhesives, and which will serve the double purpose of relieving the corn or bunion of pressure and promoting a cure.

Vith the objects abovementioned and others in view, which will appear as the invention is more fully disclosed, the same consists in a novel type of shield, hereinafter fully described and claimed, and illustrated in several different forms of embodiment in the accompanying drawings, it being understood that the form of the shield may be varied in particular instances to adapt it to the surface upon which it is to be applied and generally to insure the comfort of the wearer while using it.

In the drawings, Figure l is a top view showing a shield of one type applied to the little toe. Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the shield on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a top view of another form of shield applied to one of the intermediate toes. Fig. 4E is a side View of a bunion-shield applied. Fig. 5 is a top view of the bunion-shield applied. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the bunion-shield alone.

Referring to the drawings, in which corresponding parts are designated by similar characters of reference, 1 designates a corn-shield of the type shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the shield being formed of some light, thin, rigid material, sheet aluminium being preferred, and comprising a central raised portion 2 and a Patented November 8, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

supporting portion 3, surrounding the central raised portion and bent to conform as exactly as possible to the surface to which the shield is to be applied. The supporting portion may be of slightly-varying outlines; but in all cases it is provided at the margin with a narrow upturned rim or flange 4:, which prevents the edge of the shield,- which is comparatively thin, from cutting into the flesh of the user and causing him any discomfort. At its forward end the shield shown in Fig. 1 is preferabl y extended somewhat, as shown at 5, and the extensionis designed to rest upon the nail of the toe upon which the shield is worn, thereby giving the shield additional support. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the shield is decidedly concaved on its under surface, so as to fit closely down upon the upper and outer surfaces of the toe, and the central raised portion of the shield is large enough to form a chamher in which the corn may be completely in-. closed, so that when pressure comes upon the outer surface of the shield it will be transmitted to the portions of the toe in contact with the supporting portions of the shield only, the unyielding raised central portion of the shield preventing any pressure from reaching the corn itself.

The shield 10 (shown in Fig. 3) is similar in the main to that shown in Figs. 1 and 2, differing chiefly in the contour of the supporting portion thereof. The shield shown in Fig. 2 comprises a central raised portion 11, a supporting portion 12, surrounding the central raised portion, and a slightly-upturned flange or rim 18 at the margin of the supporting portion. As the shield 10 is intended for use upon the intermediate toes, it is necessarily different in shape from that shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and may be described as being generally of an oval contour, the sides being carried downward slightly to obtain a sufficient hold upon the sides of the toe to hold the shield in position with perfect security.

In Figs. 4 to 6 I have illustrated a shield of the form adapted for use in protecting bunions from the pressure of the shoes. This shield 20 is somewhat difierent in form from the shields above described; but in the general principle of its construction and use it is very similar thereto. The shield consists of a central raised portion 21, which is large enough to extend over the entire inflamed portion of the bunion, a surrounding supporting portion 22, which is of course so formed as to lie in close contact with the portions of the foot adjacent to the bunion and to distribute the pressure uniformly thereover, and aslightly upturned marginal portion 23, which extends along the edge of the supporting portion of the shield, except around that part of the supporting portion which extends under the foot, where a flange or rim would be inanifestl y objectionable.

In the construction of the shields as above described for general use and sale it will be necessary, of course, to supply them in various sizes and also to provide them to correspond both right and left; but the exact number of sizes which it will be desirable to furnish need not be stated here.

A marked difference between the rigid shields above described and those commonly used is in the amount of space occupied by the shields within the shoes. Most of the shields or plasters are necessarily of considerable thickness, and they act by raising the shoe or pushing it outward from all the surface of the foot adjacent to the tender point. The shields forming this invention being made of thin light sheet material do not distend the shoe to any considerable extent, the shoe-leather being pressed outward when over the sensitive point and not over the adjacent portions of the foot.

in all other shields for corns and bunions with which I am familiar some form of fastening must be employed to secure the shieldin position. W'ith the so-called plasters an adhesive is ordinarily used to cement the plaster to the surface of the foot adjacent to the sensitive point, and tapes or other similar fastening means may be employed in addition to the adhesive. The shields forming the present invention being so shaped that they conform exactly to the surface upon which they are worn require no'fastening means to hold them in position. Instead the ordinary foot-coverings keep the shield in contact with the foot, and the shape of the shield serves in every case to prevent any material displacement thereof.

Having thus described the nature and use of my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A rigid corn and bunion shield having a central raised portion and an extended supporting portion surrounding said central portion, said supporting portion being shaped to conform exactly to the surface to which the shield is applied, having a narrow upturned flange or rim at the margin thereof to prevent the edge of the shield from being pressed into the flesh.

2. A rigid corn and bunion shield having an ZLPDI'OXlIIlfltGl y central recessed portion, and a surrounding supporting portion, a portion of the shield being bent to pass under and engage with the bottom of the foot.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own 1 have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ISAAC A. GEORGE. Vitnesses:

J No. P. MADGETT, R. P. FALKNER. 

